Juror Is a Witness Who Called 911

Common Pleas Court Judge Robert Ruehlman in Cincinnati, Ohio has declared a mistrial in a domestic violence case after one of the jurors stunned the court room with her revelation that she was the anonymous witness who called 911, according to a report on Cincinnati.com dated October 19, 2010 and written by Kimball Perry.

Assistant Prosecutor Ryan Nelson had just issued his opening statement to tell the jury how he would prove James Capell, 42, of Colerain Township,  brutally mauled a woman in her College Hill home on May 30, 2010 when juror number eight, Najah Johnson-Riddle, made the stunning revelation in open court, saying she could not be a part of the jury, the same report stated.

“She said, ‘I was the (anonymous) person who made the 911 call,’” the assistant prosecutor told the newspaper.

“She said, ‘It woke me up out of my bed and I saw him beating on her. I thought she must be dead.’”

Her open court statement tainted the entire jury because it corroborated statements made by the prosecution and claims made by the victim. Ruehlman was thus constrained to declare a mistrial.

The new trial begins today. Johnson-Riddle no longer has to sit as a juror, but as a witness to be presented by prosecutors to testify against the man she originally was to sit in judgment against, the same report stated.

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